Out of the Pit
by NaruKyuuFTW12
Summary: Be careful of what falls into Tartarus, because it is never the same as when it entered...


Zoë Nightshade had not had a great week. Artemis had tasked her with tracking down Stheno, Medusa's older sister and one of the three Gorgons. She had been cutting quite a swath throughout the Midwest, and Zoë's lady had sent her and a few other hunters to send her back to Tartarus. After a long and grueling fight, Stheno had fled, and Zoë was forced to send the other hunters back due to their injuries. So here she was, walking down an alley to the door to DOA Studios, the current entrance to the Underworld. She was about to enter when she heard a voice speak up.

"So you're heading to the Underworld too?" She looked over to the person who had spoken and began to analyze him. He was tall, for a twelve year old, coming up to about her chest, but had golden eyes filled with pain and bitterness that made him seem much older. His hair was cut in a military manner, and he wore a tattered hoodie and jeans combo with a celestial bronze xyphos strapped to his back and a dagger of the same material at his waist. She eyed him with suspicion as she replied, "what dost thou mean?" The boy paused, translating the strange speech style she used, before answering, "A trio of kids came this way about the time I got here; two demigods and a satyr, they seemed to be in a rush." Zoë thought about the reasons someone would have to go down there briefly before dismissing it as irrelevant. "And what art thou doing here," she questioned wondering if he could be a monster, tightening her grip on her bow. He seemed to sense her intentions, backing up a few steps while answering, "I'm trying to get into the Underworld too, but those demigods jacked Charon's bribe rate way too high." Zoë stopped as a new thought crossed her mind. Stheno may be close at hand, but she was tired and still nursing a few wounds from the last fight with the Gorgon, and although she may dislike working with a male, he could at least serve as a distraction while she killed it. Taking a moment to calm herself and compose her thoughts, she finally looked at him again before asking, "Art thou familiar with thine blade?" He looked at her, slightly confused as he drew the xyphos and spun it in one deft, well practiced motion. "I can hold my own, why?" She took a breath, trying to steel herself for the upcoming ordeal. "I shalt pay thine's way into the Underworld, and in return thou shalt aid me against my quarry. He was about to say something, but seemed to catch himself, instead replying, "Thanks. Name's Edward, if you want to know." Zoë didn't expect such sincere appreciation from a male, so she huffed and walked briskly past him. "Zoë Nightshade." Edward nodded as he followed, muttering something she couldn't quite hear.

Fifteen minutes later, Edward stood unsteadily as the elevator transformed into a boat and Charon into a weird reaper person. He glanced at Zoë, but quickly looked away as he saw her displeasure at being there. Instead he studied the polluted water of the Styx, and tried to guess what each item represented until he felt the boat grind upon the shore. The two disembarked and stood there until Edward said, "so, where do we start searching?" Zoë scoffed at his ignorance of monsters before replying, "she will be looking to hide and the best places to do that would be within the Fields of Asphodel or near the Pit of Tartarus." Edward paled as he stated, "I'm far away from that pit right now, and I'd kinda like to stay that way." Zoë groaned at his cowardice and began to walk away, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like 'men'. He flinched at the snub, but quickly ran over to catch up. As they walked to the pit, Edward grew more and more uncomfortable with the silence until he finally asked a question. "So...how long have you been with the hunt?" There was a long silence before she sighed and responded, "longer than you've been alive." "So are you a demigod, or a mortal or-" "That is none of thine business, boy," Zoë seethed, cutting him off as he stepped back in instinctual self-preservation. The rest of the trek passed in an uncomfortable silence, and they found themselves in front of the pit, far too soon for Edward's liking. For a few moments he thought that he had finally gotten lucky, but his heart sank as he heard footsteps behind him and his nose picked up a faint smell of snakes. "Ssssso, the little huntressssss brought me a ssssssnack before my meal." Edward groaned as e closed his eyes and drew his sword before turning around and replying, "Stheno. You finally get tired of eating defenseless mortals and now you're trying to play in the big leagues?" Stheno hissed in anger, giving away her incoming sneak attack as he spun around her, giving a nasty slash to her midsection in return. He heard the thrum of Zoë's bow,and the meaty sound of the arrow hitting its target. Taking a step back, he lashed out again, scoring a deep slash across her back . Unfortunately, he didn't hear the resulting backhand that sent him flying. He rolled to evade her follow up, but heard a scream of pain instead.

Cautiously, Edward opened his eyes, but saw nothing. He made his way to where Zoë was standing and asked, "did you kill her?" She was about to reply before her eyes widened and, acting on instinct, Edward pushed her to the side as a sharp pain lanced up his neck and a heavy weight slammed into his back, sending his xyphos spinning away and him over the edge...into the pit.

 **Hello readers and welcome to Out of the Pit. This idea had been bugging me for some time now, and I've decided to do something about it. So next time we see what happened to him, a little about himself, and meet his new teacher (Warning: Witcher crossover incoming). He's going to be trapped there for three years and come out just in time for the events of Titan's Curse. I've also set up a poll for the pairing that you guys want to see, and that will last until Edward gets out of Tartarus, with the top three joining two others I've already selected. Until I see you again….NarukyuuFTW**


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